Cowboy Deputy

by Carla Cassidy

  Once she was gone the silence of the house pressed in on him. Growing up with all his siblings in the house, he’d longed for silence.

  But lately the silence in his life had felt oppressive, ushering in a loneliness he’d never felt before. His brother Jacob had closed himself off in the cabin in some form of self-imposed isolation. Brittany was missing and Tom and Caleb now had beautiful bright women to fill the silences in their lives.

  He got up from the table and carried his bowl and glass to the sink. As he rinsed the dishes and placed them in the dishwasher, he thought of all the things he needed to get done in the next couple days while he was off-duty.

  Of course, the law enforcement team in Black Rock was so small that all of the men were often called in on their time off. He left the kitchen and doused the light, then headed toward the master bedroom.

  As always, when the silence pressed in the heaviest, his thoughts turned to Brittany. A little over two months without a word, without a clue as to what happened to her. They’d found her car hidden in an abandoned barn a month ago and it was at that moment that any hope he might have entertained in seeing his sister alive again had died.

  With intentions of rising before dawn to start the catch-up on chores around the ranch, he shucked his jeans and shirt and got ready for bed. Tiny sat next to the bed and looked up at him expectantly.

  “You know you have your own bed to sleep in,” he said to the dog, who cocked his head as if he didn’t understand. Benjamin pointed to the dog bed in the corner. “Go on, get to bed.”

  Tiny remained in place for a long moment and then finally slunk slowly to his bed. He got in and then looked at Benjamin with mournful brown eyes.

  “I don’t know why you look so sad,” Benjamin said. “We both know you’ll be curled up in my bed at my feet before morning.”

  Minutes later, as he eased down onto his king-size bed, his thoughts returned to Edie Burnett. She’d been quiet during the meal but he had a feeling quiet wasn’t really in her character.

  He burrowed down and closed his eyes. It was just his luck that the first woman in a long time who had stirred something inside him was only in town for a couple days.

  From what she’d told him, she’d have a mess on her hands when she got back home. She had to find a new job and another place to live. He didn’t want to think about what she was going to do if Walt’s problem wasn’t a quick fix.

  He drifted off to sleep with visions of lush lips and green eyes playing in his dreams and was awakened some time later by the ringing of his phone on the nightstand.

  He was awake instantly, his heart drumming a rapid beat. He glanced at the clock as he fumbled in the dark for the receiver. Just after midnight. Nothing ever good came from middle-of-the-night phone calls.

  “Yeah,” he answered as he sat up.

  “It’s me,” his brother Tom said. “I’m at the hospital. Somebody beat the hell out of Walt Tolliver and he won’t talk to anyone but you.”

  “I’m on my way.” Benjamin hung up as he climbed out of bed. As he pulled on his clothes he wondered what the hell had happened to Walt and where the hell Edie had been.

  Edie rolled over and looked at the clock next to her bed. Just before midnight and she still hadn’t managed to fall asleep. When she’d come back into the house after Benjamin had left, she’d grabbed her keys and then moved her car into the garage. When she’d returned she’d wanted to ask Poppy more questions about the space aliens he thought were trying to take over Black Rock, but she was afraid to indulge the delusion. She was hoping to talk to his doctor and ask how she should handle the situation.

  Even if she’d wanted to talk to him about it, the opportunity didn’t arise. Immediately after, Poppy had gone to sleep in the bedroom just off the living room.

  She’d climbed the stairs to her room, but knew that sleep would be elusive. She’d taken a long hot shower and tried not to think about Benjamin Grayson. But thoughts of the man kept intruding.

  She’d been rude to him with her little remark about being too fast for a small-time deputy, but even though she’d just met him, she’d felt an inexplicable need to distance him from her. His smile had been far too warm, his eyes had been too brown and for just a moment, she’d been afraid that he might make her forget that she’d sworn off men for the rest of her life.

  She’d been an accident waiting to happen when she’d met Greg. Reeling with grief over her mother’s unexpected death, she’d met him in a bar two weeks after the funeral. It had been love at third drink.

  They’d dated for two months before he’d moved in with her and she realized now she’d been far too naive, hadn’t asked enough questions and instead had believed everything he’d told her about himself.

  They’d talked of marriage and children and he’d filled the loneliness that the absence of her mother had left behind. He’d told her that he was an entrepreneur between projects and that his money was tied up in his latest endeavor. God, she’d been such a fool.

  One thing was clear, she didn’t need anyone in her life. When she got back home she’d focus on finding a new job, a new place to live and cleaning up her messes. She would be just fine all alone for the rest of her life.

  She must have fallen asleep because she knew she was dreaming. Pain ripped her body, but it was a pain tempered with a sense of joy. A bright lamp nearly blinded her as the pain intensified. A murmur of voices took on an urgency that was suddenly terrifying and at the same time a bald-headed man wearing a doctor’s mask glared at her with accusation and a phone began to ring.

  She awoke with a gasp, the taste of overwhelming grief and crushing guilt thick in her mouth. Disoriented for a moment, she looked around the moonlit room. Then she remembered where she was and that the phone she’d heard in her dream was actually the phone ringing in the house.

  As it rang again…and again, she realized Poppy either didn’t hear it or didn’t intend to answer it. She looked at the clock. Twelve forty-five. Whoever was calling was persistent, for the ringing didn’t stop.

  She jumped out of bed and left her room. Flipping on the hall light, she ran down the stairs and grabbed the receiver of the phone in the living room.

  “Hello,” she said half-breathlessly.

  “It’s me, Benjamin.” His deep voice sounded irritated. “I’m here at the hospital with Walt.”

  “What?” Confusion sifted through her as she looked at the closed door of Poppy’s bedroom. “But he went to bed earlier.”

  “Apparently he went out. Somebody beat him up and he managed to flag down a car that brought him to the hospital. He’s going to be all right, but I think you should be here.”

  “I’m on my way. Where is the hospital?”

  “Go straight down Main to Chestnut and turn left. It’s about halfway down the second block. You can’t miss it.”

  She murmured a goodbye and then raced back up the stairs to get dressed. Her heart beat an uneven tattoo as she thought of somebody beating up Poppy.

  Why, oh, why, had he left the house in the middle of the night? This delusion of his about space aliens obviously had a dark undertone.

  Within minutes she was dressed and in her car creeping down the darkened Main Street, seeking Chestnut. Benjamin had sounded angry, as if it were somehow her fault that Poppy had been out wandering the streets. What did he expect her to do? Strap the man into bed at night?

  She found the hospital, a two-story brick building with a large parking area near the emergency room entrance. She easily found a parking space, and as she hurried into the door she prayed that Benjamin was right and Poppy was going to be okay.

  Once again she kicked herself for staying away for so long. She didn’t need Poppy, but it was obvious he needed her. The first person she saw when she walked into the waiting room was Benjamin.

  His dark, thick hair was tousled as if he’d just climbed out of bed, making him look even sexier than she remembered. He jumped up from the plastic chair he’d been in a
s he saw her.

  “Where is he?” she asked.

  “Where were you?” he countered, his shoulders rigid with tension. “Didn’t you know he had gone out?”

  “He went to bed just after you left. I went upstairs to go to sleep, as well. What was I supposed to do, tie a little silver bell around his neck so I’d know if he was on the move?” she asked belligerently.

  The tension slid off his shoulders and he smiled. “You’d need a ball and chain because I’m afraid he’d be able to get a little silver bell off.” He rocked back on his heels and slid a hand through his unruly hair. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to come at you like that.”

  “And I’m sorry I didn’t have a ball and chain on Poppy,” she replied, reluctantly charmed by his apologetic smile. “How is he? Can I see him?”

  Benjamin nodded. “He’s been waiting for you. He refused to talk to me until you got here. Come on, I’ll take you to him.” He placed his fingers just beneath her elbow, and she felt the warmth of the touch burning her through the sweater she’d pulled on. She tore her arm away from him.

  What was it about this man that made her feel defensive and prickly? Maybe she was overly sensitive to him because he was the least of her problems. She had a life in Topeka that was in complete and total chaos and a crazy grandfather in Black Rock that she somehow had to fix before she could go home.

  She heard Poppy before they reached the exam room. “I’m fine. I just need to go home and rest a bit.” His voice held the raspy edge of frustration.

  As she and Benjamin stepped into the exam room Edie’s breath whooshed out of her at the sight of Poppy, who sat upright on the examining table. One of his eyes was blackened and swollen shut and his jaw held a massive bruise that appeared to grow darker as she stared at him.

  “Oh, Poppy,” she exclaimed, her heart squeezing tight in her chest. “What happened?”

  He shifted positions and winced. “One of the bastards caught me.”

  “Where were you, Walt?” Benjamin asked.

  The doctor, an older man with a receding hairline and a kind smile, held up a hand to halt any questioning. “Before we get into that, I’m Dr. Drake. I’ve been Walt’s doctor for the past twenty years.” He held out a hand to Edie, who introduced herself.

  “Other than what’s obvious, what are his injuries?” she asked.

  “A couple of cracked ribs and a lot of bruising along his left side. I’d like to keep him here under observation for a night or two.”

  Edie breathed a sigh of relief at the doctor’s words, but Walt took exception. “I don’t need to stay overnight. I want my own bed in my own house.”

  “Walt, as your doctor I’m afraid I’m going to have to insist,” Dr. Drake said firmly. “You took quite a beating and I wouldn’t be doing my job if I just let you out of here without running a few more tests.”

  The mutiny on Poppy’s face eased into something resembling resignation. “I’m not going to wear one of those damn gowns and this place better have cable television. And I want a pretty nurse.”

  Dr. Drake smiled. “I think we can handle all that. Now I’ll just get out of here and let Benjamin conduct his investigation.”

  “Dr. Drake, before I leave, I’d like to have a word with you in private,” Edie said.

  He nodded. “I’ll be in my office at the end of the hall, and if I’m not there just grab a nurse and have her hunt me down.” He left the room and Edie turned back to Poppy as Benjamin stepped closer to the bed.

  “Where were you, Walt?” he asked again.

  “Out by the cemetery. I thought that might be a hot spot for those creatures and damned if I wasn’t right. I was only there about an hour when one of them showed up. Either I made a sound or those suckers have some kind of extrasensory stuff ’cause even though I was hiding behind a bush, he came tearing after me.” He looked from Benjamin to Edie. “I think it’s best if you leave town, Edie. Those creatures are violent and this town isn’t a safe place anymore.”

  “I’m not going anywhere, Poppy,” she replied. “At least not until I know you’re safe and well.”

  “This space alien, what did he look like?” Benjamin asked.

  “Like an alien,” Walt exclaimed, seeming to get more agitated with each question.

  “Poppy, you need to be more specific,” Edie replied. “Was he little and green?”

  Poppy shot her a look as if she’d lost her mind. “He wasn’t some damn cartoon Martian. I couldn’t tell much what he looked like. He was wearing all black. His face didn’t have a nose or mouth, just big eyes.”

  “Where exactly in the cemetery were you?” Benjamin had pulled out a small notepad to jot down the pertinent information.

  “I was hiding behind that big burning bush at the entrance and the alien was just inside the gate.”

  “What was he doing?” Benjamin asked.

  “Just walking,” Walt replied.

  On and on the questions went. To Benjamin’s credit he didn’t lose patience even when Walt got cranky and insisted they needed to call in more law enforcement for the small town.

  When the nurse came in to move him from emergency into one of the regular rooms, Edie and Benjamin were shooed out. Edie gave Poppy a gentle kiss on the top of the head and after promising to visit him the next morning, she and Benjamin left the room.

  “You didn’t get much to go on,” she said to Benjamin as they walked down the hall toward the doctor’s office. Nervous energy jangled inside her. She’d managed to hold it together in front of Poppy, but she felt perilously close to losing it now.

  “I’m sure it wasn’t a space invader on a nefarious mission, but somebody hurt Walt and I intend to find the person responsible,” he said with an intensity that somehow calmed her.

  “Why would somebody want to hurt him like that? He’s an old man. He’s not a threat to anyone.” She was horrified to feel the ominous burn of tears in her eyes. God, she’d only been with Benjamin three times and she refused to be in tears yet again.

  “Are you all right?” he asked. There was a softness in his eyes, a gentle but steady light that made her want to fall into it. He raised a hand, as if to touch her hair or cheek, but dropped it as she stiffened her back and took a step away from him. Someplace buried in her mind she recognized that this man was definitely dangerous to her.

  “I need to speak to Dr. Drake. Please keep me updated on the investigation.” Without waiting for his reply, she turned and hurried down the hall, away from him…away from temptation.

  Chapter 3

  The Black Rock Memorial Cemetery was located about two miles from Walt’s home. It was a peaceful plot of land, shady with large trees and with several stone benches amid the headstones.

  The grass was neatly mown and the flower beds without a weed. The place was maintained by Josh Willoughby who lived in a small house next to the cemetery. He was an affable man who worked at the feed store and took care of the cemetery on the weekends and on his days off.

  Benjamin’s parents were here. They’d been killed in a helicopter accident six years ago and as Benjamin approached the front gate, he made a mental note to stop by their graves before he left.

  The bush that Walt had told him he’d hidden behind was next to the front gate, a burning bush that had fully flamed into red leaves with the fall air.

  The grass was too short and dry to show any signs of the struggle that had taken place between Walt and his space alien. He bent down on one knee next to the bush and began to comb the grass with his gloved hand, looking for some sort of evidence that might help identify Walt’s attacker.

  As he worked he couldn’t help but think about Edie. She’d been foremost in his thoughts since he’d left her at the hospital near dawn.

  He’d been impressed by how she’d handled the situation at the hospital. She’d remained calm and patient with Walt even when he’d gotten downright cantankerous.

  It was only as they’d stepped out of the room that he saw a crack in
her composure. She’d looked small and lost and overwhelmed by everything that was going on. Benjamin had fought the impulse to pull her into his arms and hold her until somehow her world was magically set right.

  His family teased him about his penchant for picking up strays. Dogs and cats and people needing help always seemed to find their way to Benjamin.

  But his crazy attraction to Edie Burnett had nothing to do with his desire to help her through a tough situation. The very scent of her excited him, her nearness half stole his breath away and her mouth seemed to beckon for a taste. He was like a teenager in heat and wasn’t quite sure what to do with his desire for her.

  He’d wanted to kiss her, right there in the hospital hallway. He’d wanted to pull her up against his body and wrap his arms around her and hold her until that frightened, lost look in her eyes changed to desire.

  It was a new feeling for him, the instant chemistry he felt toward her and one he was reluctant to deny.

  All thoughts of Edie flew out of his head as his hand touched something metal. He pulled the item from the grass and gazed at it thoughtfully. It appeared to be part of a key chain, a flat black circle with the initial A in silver in the center.

  He placed it in a small evidence bag. There was no way of knowing if it might have come off Walt’s attacker or had been dropped by somebody else at another time.

  “Problems?”

  The deep voice coming from just behind Benjamin spun him up and around, his hand automatically reaching for his gun. “Jeez, Josh, you scared the hell out of me,” he said as he relaxed. “I figured you were at work.”

  “It’s my day off. I saw you skulking around and wondered if there was a problem.”

  “Walt Tolliver got the tar beat out of him here last night.”

  Josh frowned and hitched up his jeans around his bulging belly. He was a big man, an inch taller than Benjamin’s six feet and at least fifty pounds heavier. “I’ve been trying to keep an extra eye out here lately but last night me and the wife went to bed early.”

  “So you didn’t see or hear anything?”